This is Tour Diary, where artists give us a behind-the-scenes look at life on the road. Back in February, Lala Lala (aka Lillie West) returned with her fifth studio album and Sub Pop debut, Heaven 2. The LP leveled up all of her strengths in a tight collection — aching songwriting, gritty beauty, and lush textures that flow freely from synth-pop to trip-hop to bursts of saxophone. Part of that well-rounded palette comes from leaving Chicago, writing Heaven 2 while traveling to Taos, Reykjavík, London, and finally Los Angeles, where she now lives. Throughout the spring, West brought her songs on the road, speaking to anxiety, escape, and the messiness of the everyday night after night.
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In the midst of the run, West walked us through some memories from the West Coast leg with the U.K. duo Lots of Hands. From an “iconic rest stop” to a KEXP performance, check out the photos below. Her tour continues tonight at Chicago’s Thalia Hall, running until mid-April with back-to-back shows in NYC.
I made this in the green room and tried to force everyone else to make them, but it didn’t work. I was the only one who made plastic jewelry.
Famed rest stop “The Thing.” Can you tell how tired I was at this moment?
Beautiful butterfly cookie.
Clarity’s purse filled with water.
KEXP! I have always wanted to do one, and it was so fun.
An iconic rest stop that is hard for me to remember where it was. Maybe Idaho.
Some food highlights. Fava in Berkley and Koyote in Salt Lake City.
Our West Coast opener was this band from the U.K. called Lots of Hands. I really love their band, and they are so sweet. I miss them already.
Quality Inn in rural Colorado being beautiful.
We found this dog outside Austin and went on a (successful) journey to find his owner. I wished we could bring him on the whole tour.
Pretty intense sign if you ask me.
Abby carrying oatmeal on their suitcase.
AirBnb host in Joshua Tree was storing records loose in a pile. Absolutely insane behavior, IMO.
Beautiful Mount Shasta.